Back To The 80s-Chapter 323 - 333: Blessed (added monthly ticket 840)_1
Zhou Siping listened to his daughter and couldn’t help but chuckle and complain, "You stubborn kid, everything I do is for your good."
Wen Xiuqing also chuckled and said, "I don’t think that teacher we just met is a good match for Xiaolan. Xiaolan is strong-willed and needs someone mellower. That Mr. Zhang seemed quite gloomy even though he said nothing. Such a person with heavy scheming isn’t suitable for Xiaolan."
Bai Xiaolan said proudly, "Mom, see, Auntie Wen is right. Don’t just take any tom, dick or harry home as if I can’t get married."
Zhou Siping glared at his daughter and grumbled, "I’m genuinely afraid that you won’t get married and you’ll remain here, being a burden to us. We are always worried about you."
Bai Xiaolan pretended not to hear, scratching her ears, making Zhou Siping so angry his teeth itched.
Seeing Bai Xiaolan reminded Wen Xiuqing of Lu Ruixue, which made her sigh. She really enjoyed Bai Xiaolan’s character. If she had been like this when she was younger, she would have put Qin Ximei in her place, and many subsequent troubles wouldn’t have surfaced.
Thinking of this, she said to Zhou Siping with a smile, "Don’t worry, Xiaolan will definitely marry a good man. Look at her, she has a blessed appearance!"
Zhou Siping sighed, "What troubles me is her stubbornness. She always stirs up trouble without taking an inch of loss. What a way for a girl to be. If someone offends you, just retort. No, she hits back. It makes me so cross I can hardly breathe. I dare not let her out, but as soon as her buddies summon her from beneath the window, she runs off."
The more Zhou Siping spoke about Bai Xiaolan, the more faults he found with her. How did he end up with such a troublesome daughter?
Wen Xiuqing chuckled and reassured, "Don’t worry, soon there will be someone who can calm her down. Then you won’t need to worry anymore."
Hearing this, Bai Xiaolan was chuckling and wondering herself, what kind of person would it take to calm her down?
Little Mo Wang sat obediently in his grandmother’s arms. Zhou Siping gave him a thin slice of apple to gnaw on.
Little Mo Wang struggled to break the apple slice into small pieces with his little tooth poking out. Though he struggled to eat it, he relished every bit of it.
After having lunch at the Bai Family and sitting for a while, Wen Xiuqing bundled up Little Mo Wang tightly, getting ready to go home.
Upon seeing this, Bai Xiaolan volunteered to escort Wen Xiuqing home, as she was worried about the slippery path and didn’t trust Xiuqing carrying the baby.
Zhou Siping patted her arm and said, "Quit your antics. If anyone is going to escort Xiuqing back, it’s me. You stay put at home. If your dad doesn’t see you when he returns, he’ll make you practice calligraphy."
Hearing this, Bai Xiaolan immediately halted. She dreaded writing calligraphy. Her father insisted calligraphy was a way to cultivate the mind, calm a turbulent temper and pushed her to practice daily, making her life miserable.
The Bai Family is a descendant of the Guwalgiya clan, although they had Han surname. Tinges of pride of their aristocracy still clung to their ideals. Consequently, they trained their sons to be "cultured and brave", and their daughters to be "graceful and intelligent".
Bai Xiaolan couldn’t master any traditionally feminine skills, which always earned her scolding from her aunt, Bai Mingzhu.
Wen Xiuqing didn’t let Zhou Siping accompany her, instead hurried home herself carrying Mo Wang. The rhythm of her steps quickly lulled Little Mo Wang to sleep.
On her way back, she had to pass through Siwangfu Village. As she was crossing the entryway, she bumped into Yuan Dahai in a hurry.
"Sister-in-law." Yuan Dahai stopped to greet Wen Xiuqing.
Wen Xiuqing gave a cold ’hmm’ and carried Mo Wang back home.
Behind her, Yuan Dahai said, "Sister-in-law. Qin Ximei has gone mad. I’m sorry for what happened. I am going to send her back to her hometown and go to the Aid Korea troop."
Xiuqing stopped in place, scoffing, "Well, she got off easy, didn’t she? Just look out for her. Don’t let her cause any more trouble with her madness act. You don’t need to join the war for our sake."
Having said that, she hurried home carrying Mo Wang. Once their relationship had turned sour, she didn’t want to befriend any of the Yuan Family members. While Yuan Dahai seemed pitiable, had he spent more time at home, perhaps his children wouldn’t have turned out like this, and Qin Ximei wouldn’t have been so reckless.
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After putting Xiaopang to bed, Gu Xiaobei asked Lu Zhanguo to stay upstairs with the child while she went downstairs to wait since she was afraid that Mo Wang might not have had enough milk and might wake up fussy.
Seeing Wen Xiuqing come back carrying Mo Wang, who was still sleeping peacefully, she said in a low voice, "He’s asleep already? Wasn’t fussy, right?"
Wen Xiuqing shook her head, not wanting to wake the child, and passed Mo Wang to Gu Xiaobei to take upstairs to let him sleep.
Mo Wang woke up after Xiaobei took him and smiled when he saw her.
Wen Xiuqing said, "You hurry and take the baby upstairs to feed him. Mo Wang only had a little rice at noon, and he must be hungry by now."
Gu Xiaobei took Mo Wang upstairs. Not seeing his mother for several hours had made the baby extra excited and he waved his little arms happily.
As soon as they entered the room and she lay him down, Mo Wang began fumbling for Gu Xiaobei’s bosom, eager to nurse.
Lu Zhanguo, who had been sleeping with Xiaopang, woke up when they came in. He looked at Mo Wang nursing and couldn’t help but comment "It’s time to stop breastfeeding."
Gu Xiaobei glanced at him and said quietly, "You are the one who should stop."
Lu Zhanguo felt a bit put out looking at this unappreciative little guy. He was just worried about his wife, who had to get up several times a night to feed the two kids. But it seemed he was misunderstood. Was he really such a deplorable man?
"Aren’t you misunderstanding something?"
Gu Xiaobei held back her laughter. She found it quite fun teasing her man.
Once Mo Wang was full, he started crawling around on the bed. Lu Zhanguo quickly gave him his toy soldier that plays drums. This soldier would make a sound once wound up. As Xiaopang was sleeping, he couldn’t wind it up, so he gave it to Mo Wang to play with.
Mo Wang curiously turned the toy over twice and stuffed it directly into his mouth.
Gu Xiaobei quickly took it back. The toy soldier was made of plastic and was dirty. As she held Mo Wang, she complained, "We can’t buy these small gadgets anymore. They’re so dirty and filled with toxins."
Lu Zhanguo was puzzled, "It’s just a plastic toy. How could it be toxic?"
Gu Xiaobei explained, "The plastic is all colored. Who knows what they used? It’s worrying when it ends up in his mouth." In this era, though there were fewer counterfeit products, the national quality inspection standards were not very comprehensive.
Lu Zhanguo gave it a thought and agreed. Yet, he was reluctant to throw it away because he had spent a dollar on it.
Feeling amused at Lu Zhanguo’s stinginess, Gu Xiaobei said quietly with a smile, "You take Mo Wang downstairs to play. Xiaopang and I will have a nap."
If they kept making noise in the room, Xiaopang was bound to wake up soon.
